Cost of Moving House: 6 Fees to Expect

Moving house can be a stressful time, particularly if unexpected fees arise. Whether you’re buying or selling your home, there is more than just the house price to consider. Knowing what fees to expect throughout the process and how much these are likely to be can help you budget for all eventualities. This will also allow you to assess your affordability and whether buying a house is feasible for you. We’ve put together this helpful guide to help you understand the cost of moving home.

Surveys

Before buying a house it is important that surveys are carried out. If you are having a mortgage this fee should be covered but if not you will still need to have a survey of some sort carried out. Surveys will identify any potential problems with the house so you know exactly what you’re letting yourself in for. They can be in the form of a very basic building survey and home report, costing around £200, to a full structural analysis that can cost upwards of £600! The type of house you’re buying will depend on the survey that you need. For example, a full structural analysis would be a good idea if you a buying an older property, but may be completely unnecessary if you are buying a new build.

Average Cost - £200 - £600+

Legal Cost

When moving house you will require a solicitor. As such, there are certain legal fees that will need to be paid to cover all of the legal processes. Your solicitor will provide services including financial transfers, conveyancing, paperwork and contracts. They will also conduct searches in local planning permissions. While conducting these searches could cost you up to £450, they may save you money in the long run.

Once the sale has been agreed, the property needs to be officially transferred from one person to the other, known as conveyancing. On average conveyancing fees range between £500-£1,500.

In addition to the property ownership officially being transferred, money also needs to change hands. Your solicitor will generally charge you around £50 to electronically transfer money from the lender to the solicitor.

Valuation Fees

Before you buy a property your mortgage lender will carry out a ‘mortgage valuation’. During this your mortgage lender will assess the market value of the property, as well as the price you offered to buy it for. This is done so that in the unfortunate circumstance that they need to repossess the home, they know exactly what the property price is.  These valuation fees can be anywhere between £300-£400.

Stamp Duty

If you’re buying a property for more than £125,000, you are required to pay stamp duty. This is the case unless you’re a first time buyer in which case you are exempt from paying stamp duty on the first £300,000, unless the total property value exceeds £500,000. Stamp duty is essentially a land tax and the amount you pay will depend on the value of your house as it goes up in bands. The minimum you can expect to pay is 2% of the property’s total value. For advice on how much stamp duty you should expect to pay, please contact us.

Agency Fees

If you’re looking at selling a property through an estate agent, there will be fees involved for their services. These fees cover things such as property listing, advertising, house viewings, account management and advice. Fees can vary depending on the services you require. For example, if you wish to have a premier listing with floor plans and professional photography, you are likely to pay more. These may be fixed fees, or vary depending on the property.

Here at Lets Move, we give you three different options to sell your house. You can choose to pay a fixed upfront fee of £745 + vat, with nothing to pay upon completion of the sale. You can also choose to spread the cost, paying a fixed upfront feed and a final completion fee. Finally, you can pay nothing until completion, at which point you will pay percentage based fee. Fore more information about the 3 different ways you can sell your house with Lets Move, please contact us.

Moving Expenses

Moving costs can vary from person to person. Different factors will include whether or not you need to hire a removal company and how far you are moving. If you can’t do it yourself, do you just need to hire a van, if so, which size do you need? Or, will you be requiring some extra helping hands from the removal company too. You should be realistic about how long you need their services for to avoid having to rush, or late fees. You should get quotes for different removal costs from a range of companies.

Average Cost - £250 - £1500

If you need more information about the cost of selling your house, and for professional and friendly advice, please contact us